Crypto Exchange Bithumb Blocks Trading in 11 Countries

Bithumb, the largest cryptocurrency exchange based in South Korea, has announced that it will be blocking crypto trading in 11 countries as a part of its revised regulations, attempting to prevent money laundering using its platform. Moreover, there is going to be an even stricter verification process for foreign users.

Bithumb announced yesterday that it has finished revising its internal regulations to prevent activities like money laundering and other illegal activities using its system. Business Korea further explains:

With growing concerns over money laundering through cryptocurrency trading, Bithumb, South Korea’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange, will ban digital asset trading with investors in North Korea, Iran, Iraq, and eight other countries that are considered as high-risk jurisdictions by the Non-Cooperative Countries and Territories (NCCT) Initiative.

Bithumb wrote that it’s attempting to prevent an inflow of funds that have anything to do with ‘crime and international terrorism’, and to do that, it will have to block users from NCCT countries. New users from NCCT countries will not be accepted, and the existing users from these countries will not be allowed to trade from the 21st.

Bithumb says it is enforcing these strict rules to increase transparency in the crypto market and foster investor protection, adding that it is ready to cooperate with the government and enforce self-regulation based on the policies of the Korean Blockchain Association. These new regulations reflect the recommendations of the association and the national government, reports Korea Economic Daily.

Business Korea describes NCCT countries as regions with insufficient laws and regulations to prevent money laundering and use of various forms of money to fund illegal activities, including Iraq, North Korea, Iran, and Sri Lanka. According to Bithumb’s official website, other banned countries are Syria, Trinidad and Tobago, Yemen, Vanuatu, Serbia, Tunisia, and Ethiopia.

The news outlet noted that Bithumb has made this decision only to prevent its infrastructure and platform from being used to perform any criminal activities. It added:

Bithumb will soon request foreign users to endure a mobile verification process to ensure users cannot deceive the platform by falsifying personal information and residential address starting from next month.

About us

CoinFrenzy provides the latest news on Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Ripple (XRP), Tron (TRX), and many more cryptocurrencies. We also feature interviews with popular people in the industry who bring their revolutionary ideas and products to life to make groundbreaking change.